Box Score BALTIMORE, Md. – Rae Corbo hit an off-balance layup with 24.9 seconds left, and the Norfolk State women's basketball team survived a wild last few minutes of play in a 76-75 victory against Morgan State Saturday afternoon at the Talmadge Hill Field House.

NSU led for most of the second half and by as much as 10 in both halves, but the Bears took their second lead of the second stanza with 1:22 left when Tracey Carrington hit a pair of free throws for a one-point lead. Junior Batavia Owens converted a layup off an offensive board on the next possession before Omara Parker went right down the court for a lay-in with 50.6 seconds to go for another one-point advantage for the Bears.

Corbo got the kind roll on the rim following an NSU timeout for the sixth and final lead change in the last four minutes of play. Parker's runner in the lane with eight seconds left hit off the iron, and a desperation heave at the buzzer by Carrington following a pair of Spartan free throw attempts fell harmlessly to the floor.

NSU improved to 8-8 overall and 3-2 in MEAC play, already one more conference win than last season. Morgan State, playing its first home game of the year, fell to 3-13 overall, 0-3 in conference play.

NSU had to hold on for the win despite having a huge advantage on the boards, 57-33, including 30 on the offensive glass that led to an 18-9 advantage in second-chance points. Owens (12 points, 12 rebounds) and freshman Quineshia Leonard (13 points, 10 rebounds) each had double-doubles for the Spartans, while sophomore Rachel Gordon had a career-high 14 boards with nine points.

Morgan State was done in by a 13-of-21 day from the free throw line, with several key misses in the second half. NSU did not fare much better, hitting 16-of-30 from the charity stripe. The Bears led by as much as eight in the first half and had the momentum before NSU used a big run at the end to take an eight-point lead into the intermission, 46-38.

Senior Whitney Long led the Spartans with 16 points, including 14 in the first half, while Corbo also hit double figures with 15. Junior Recca Trice had 10 assists, as the Spartans had 23 helpers on their 29 baskets. NSU tied the Division I record for assists in a game.

NSU hit 29-of-74 (39.2 percent) for the game, while Morgan State was a more-efficient 28-of-65 (43.1 percent).

After Gordon converted a traditional 3-point play for an early 5-2 lead to start the game, Keirah Hicks sank a pair of treys to help put the Bears on top, 13-8. That second basket by Hicks occurred at the 16:23 mark of the half and continued a torrid stretch of scoring for both teams that lasted the entire first 20 minutes of play.

The Spartans used a short 7-2 run to keep Morgan State from stretching the lead, thanks to a layup down low and three free throws from Leonard. The Bears went back up by eight, 30-22, with 8:48 left, but senior Tyisha Bridges hit three straight field goals on three straight Spartan possessions to cut the deficit to two, 30-28, forcing a Morgan State timeout.

Long then hit a three-pointer and the next two buckets for the Spartans to help NSU pull back ahead by four, and Leonard's layup right after that at the 2:39 mark ended a 12-2 run for NSU and gave the Spartans a 40-34 lead. Freshman Ebony Brown hit one from just inside the 3-point line to give the Spartans their last points of the half with 37 seconds left. NSU forced Morgan State into some low-percentage shots late in the first stanza, including a few from beyond the arc, as the Spartans used a long 15-4 run to end the half.

Long led NSU with 14 points at the break, while Parker had 11 for Morgan State.

Morgan State hit a pair from long range early in the second half to keep NSU's lead at five, but Corbo knocked home a pair of shots and a couple of free throws for a 59-49 lead at the 13:10 mark. NSU got cold hands for the next several minutes, as Gordon's putback at 9:18 after several offensive boards marked the only basket in a five-and-a half minute stretch for the Spartans.

That allowed the Bears to eventually cut the lead to one, 63-62, following an 11-2 run. Morgan State battled back and finally took the lead back at 69-68 at the 4:01 mark thanks to a long range bomb from Hicks. Trice found Corbo all alone down low to get the lead back for NSU, and Owens hit a pair of free throws at the 2:42 mark for a 72-69 lead.

Moneshia Davis and Parker went 1-of-2 from the charity stripe before Carrington hit a pair to start the final last minute stretch.

Parker led the Bears with 19 points, while Carrington had 15 with a team-high six rebounds. Hicks tallied 12 points, and Davis added 10.

The Bears committed just 10 turnovers on the day and had 19 points off 17 Spartan turnovers. Morgan State hit 6-of-20 from the 3-point line, while NSU had a 40-30 advantage in points in the paint.

NSU will stay in town for a contest against Coppin State Monday at 5:30 p.m. at the Physical Education Complex.